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Downloading Medical Records

As part of VA’s Digital Health Modernization strategy, our team transitioned the medical records experience on My HealtheVet to VA.gov.

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The goal: Give Veterans a simple, accessible way to view and download their records without sifting through thousands of pages.

THE PROJECT

My Role 

UX Design Lead

The Team 

  • 2 designers

  • Accessibility specialist

  • Research team

  • 10 engineers

Duration 

12 weeks to MVP

Tools 

  • Sketch

  • Figma

  • Mural

THE VETERANS

Audience: Over 9 million Veterans, with a large proportion of baby boomers
 

Needs: Simple access to complex data, inclusive for Veterans with physical and cognitive disabilities
 

Challenge: Prior design was non-compliant with WCAG/508 and inaccessible to assistive technology users

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THE PROBLEM

Download-Only 

  • ​Veterans couldn't view records on the site. They had to view their reports through an on screen PDF previewer that didn't work with assistive technology.

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  • Downloaded PDF reports were incompatible with screen readers.​​

Overwhelming Options 

The legacy site used a form with 49 checkboxes to generate Veteran medical records in a PDF format, potentially with thousands of pages.​​

 Ambiguous Navigation 

  • ​Health records spanned 12 categories with inconsistent structure.

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  • Self-entered records were included in the web UI and downloadable reports. Unfortunately, Veterans incorrectly assumed self-entered records could be viewed by their health care team.

THE SOLUTION

Download-Optional 

  • ​Veterans (including those who use assistive tech) can now view records on the page, without being required to download. 

​

  • PDF reports are now compatible with screen readers.​​

Simple Selections 

The 49 checkboxes have been reduced to 11 options with Plain Language descriptions.​​

Intuitive Navigation 

  • ​Health records are now restructured from 12 categories down to 8 types of records with consistent formatting.

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  • Detached self-entered records from the official medical record to prevent confusion.

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  • Retired self-entered reporting in the UI, instead offering a historical report that includes data previously entered by Veterans.

DESIGN PROCESS

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Research and Discovery 

  • Participated in user interviews conducted by the client

  • Reviewed legacy usage patterns and pain points

  • Audited VA Design System for gaps

Early Concepts and Collaboration 

  • Developed low-fidelity wireframes for iterative feedback

  • Ran co-design sessions with VA partners

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 High-Fidelity Prototypes and Accessibility Audit 

  • Created clickable prototypes for usability testing

  • Worked closely with accessibility specialist to ensure WCAG and 508 compliance

Hi Fi labs.png
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Testing, Iteration & Validation 

  • Participated in testing sessions and synthesis of findings

  • Flattened the navigation for easier findability

  • Refined the domain structure from 12 categories to 8 digestible domains

Recommendation based on usability test results. Research and analysis conducted by Anne Kennedy. 

Health History Findings.png

Landing page iteration with flattened navigation

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BEFORE AND AFTER

Before

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After

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Screenshot 2025-06-22 at 6.26.34 PM.png

OUTCOME AND IMPACT

Launched to 100% of authenticated users by Dec 2024

Achieved full WCAG 2.1 AA and 508 compliance

Reduced processing time from hours to near-instant

Veterans can now view or download their records on demand

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Overall, usability testing showed faster navigation, better findability, and clear user preference for direct record access over Blue Button reports.

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